These caramel popcorn balls are made in the microwave in just 15 minutes! Covered in sweet, gooey caramel and perfectly chewy and crunchy.
I love the rich, golden flavor of caramel and how decadent it tastes in desserts! Favorites include microwave caramel candies, caramel apple dip and homemade toffee.
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Easy Caramel Popcorn Balls
These caramel popcorn balls are adapted from my microwave caramel popcorn recipe and taste SO delicious! They’re covered in a sweet, gooey caramel sauce and are perfectly chewy and crunchy like my favorite caramel candy but with a crunch from popcorn!
The best thing about them is that they are SO simple to make and will take only about 15 minutes from start to finish. You don’t even need to turn on the stove and pull out the candy thermometer. Easy peasy!
Why I Love This Recipe
- Made in the microwave in 15 minutes. No stove or oven is required to make these popcorn balls! Only the microwave is used.
- Kid and adult approved. These caramel popcorn balls are a fun treat for ALL ages – everyone always loves them!
- Perfect for parties. I love to serve these caramel balls at fall parties or for an easy Halloween dessert with some M&Ms or candy corn mixed in.
Recipe Ingredients
A simple caramel made in the microwave is poured over popcorn to create the ultimate popcorn ball any time of year. It is ooey gooey, soft, and sweet!
Find the full printable recipe with specific measurements below.
- Popcorn: I use Skinny Pop, but any type of popcorn will do including stovetop popcorn. The salty nuttiness of popcorn pairs perfectly with the sweet caramel.
- Butter: I like to use unsalted butter when the popcorn is already salted. The butter helps create the creaminess of the caramel.
- Brown sugar: The richness of brown sugar adds so much depth to the caramel and gives it a beautiful color.
- Corn syrup: Not only does this add an extra layer of sweetness, but it also helps to stabilize the caramel.
- Vanilla: I love the flavor vanilla adds and how it balances the sweetness and saltiness of these popcorn balls.
- Baking soda: The reason we add baking soda to the caramel is not just for the fun foam that happens, but because it reacts with the brown sugar and corn syrup, creating tiny carbon dioxide air bubbles. This leads to a softer texture in caramel.
Other Add-Ins:
These popcorn balls taste delicious as-is but feel free to add in extras if desired. You could even drizzle the tops with melted chocolate or use food coloring to dye the popcorn balls fun colors. Such a fun way to make these treats a little more festive around the holidays!
- Chopped nuts
- M&M’s
- Chocolate chips
- Mini marshmallows
- Candy corn
- Festive sprinkles
How to Make Caramel Popcorn Balls
- Make popcorn. Prepare popcorn and place in a large metal bowl.
- Cook caramel in the microwave. Add butter, brown sugar, and corn syrup in a microwave-safe bowl. Cook syrup mixture for one minute. Stir and cook for two additional minutes for chewy popcorn balls. If you like crunchy popcorn balls, cook an extra minute.
- Add in vanilla and baking soda. Remove the caramel mixture from the microwave and stir in vanilla and baking soda.
- Coat popcorn with caramel and form it into balls. Pour caramel over popcorn and stir until well coated. Allow cooling slightly. Grease hands with butter (or wax paper or gloves) and shape the popcorn into 2-inch balls.
TIP: To test if your caramel has reached a soft ball, grab a cup of ice water. Then dip a spoon in the caramel and then dip it into the ice water. It should form a soft ball (chewy caramel). If it’s still stringy, cook an additional minute.
Love popcorn recipes? Try white cheddar popcorn or this simple popcorn seasoning recipe next!
More Easy Popcorn Recipes
Caramel Popcorn Balls
Video
Ingredients
- 10 cups popped popcorn , I used Skinny Pop
- ½ cup unsalted butter , cut into pieces
- 1 cup light brown sugar , packed
- ¼ cup light corn syrup
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Pinch salt
Optional mix-in's: Chopped nuts, M&M's, Candy corn, Sprinkles
Instructions
- Prep. Lay a piece of wax or parchment paper on the counter or on a baking sheet. Place popped popcorn in a large bowl.
- Make caramel. In a microwave-safe bowl, microwave 1/2 cup butter, 1 cup light brown sugar, and 1/4 cup corn syrup 1 minute. Stir and cook 2 additional minutes for chewy popcorn balls. If you like crunchy popcorn balls, cook 1 minute more. Stir in 1 teaspoon vanilla and 1/2 teaspoon baking soda.
- Coat popcorn. Pour caramel over popcorn and stir until well coated. Let cool slightly.
- Make into popcorn balls. Grease hands with butter (or use wax paper or gloves) and shape the popcorn into 2-inch balls. Wrap each ball with plastic wrap or store in a zip-top bag or an airtight container up to 2 weeks.
Last step: Please leave a comment and rating after you make the recipe.
Notes
- For a fun twist, mix in M&M’s, candy corn, sprinkles, and/or nuts.
- Use food coloring to dye the popcorn balls a festive color for the holidays.
Nutrition
Nutrition provided is an estimate. It will vary based on specific ingredients used.
Recipe FAQs
You may have too much popcorn and not enough caramel. I always start with 10 cups of popcorn and add more if it seems there isn’t enough. You also want to be sure to really squeeze the balls together to make sure they are sticking.
This is the opposite issue of the one above. This typically happens when you have too much caramel and not enough popcorn. As I mentioned, I start with 10 cups of popcorn and add more if it looks like there is too much caramel sauce.
To keep them fresh, you can either wrap them individually with plastic wrap or store them in a zip-top bag or airtight container. They will keep at room temperature for up to 2 weeks.
Nicole
I recently made this recipe for my son’s baseball game as snacks afterwards. The flavor was delicious and it was a quick and easy recipe to follow but the consistency did not turn out correctly. The popcorn balls were soft and the popcorn, that I made on the stove, tasted stale and soggy after I coated it with the caramel sauce even though I made the balls the evening before their morning game. I also had difficulty forming the balls so there should be more direction with how long to let the caramel cool before trying to form the balls. I would like to use this recipe again and hoping there is some feedback with how to have the popcorn balls chewier or harder versus soggy. Thank you!
Sarah @IHeartNaptime
Hi! Without being in the kitchen with you it can hard to know exactly what went wrong, but we can troubleshoot a few tips to try! To address the soggy issue, sounds like you had too much caramel and not enough popcorn. This is addressed in the FAQ under the recipe card. Always have a few cups extra on hand and eyeball it to see if if you need to add more. You may need the full 12 cups or even more, sometimes stove top popped popcorn can yield slightly smaller popcorn. How long you cook the caramel can impact the chewy vs. crunchy outcome, see step 2 in the recipe card. In regards to forming the balls, you will want to wait until the caramel popcorn mixture is slightly cooled down (almost room temperature) and then form the balls. Looking forward to hearing how it goes!
Jody
How can the caramel sauce be made on the stove?
Liz
I could not get the popcorn to stick together to make balls! So now it’s yummy Carmel corn.
Novella
I loved it, but the balls didn’t stick together very well
Jamielyn Nye
So glad you enjoyed caramel popcorn balls!
Terri
Can you substitute Roger’s Golden Syrup for the Corn Syrup in this recipe? TY.
I Heart Naptime Community
Hi Terri! I haven’t tested this recipe using Roger’s Golden Syrup. If you try it, let me know how it goes :)
Peggy
So yummy and not too sweet! Skinny Pop is such a great idea. Thank you.
Bamagirl
Super easy to make and delicious!
Allyson Zea
Made these with my kids and everyone loved them!